AnnexationPlan[Type text] Page 0

ANNEXATION PLAN

FIRE PROTECTION, POLICE SERVICES, PARKS AND RECREATION, LIBRARIES,
SEWER, STREET LIGHTS, PROPERTY TAX IMPACTS, FREQUENTLY ASKED
QUESTIONS
For the northwest,
unincorporated
portion of the City s
Northwest Planning
Area.
1

Annexation Boundary









2


CONTENTS
Purposes of Annexation..3
Fire Protection Services..4
Public Works5
Police Services...9
Library Services.10
Parks and Recreation...11
Property Tax Impacts...13
Other Taxes, Fees and Charges.15
Zoning and Land Use Plan.16
Frequently Asked Questions17

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Purposes of Annexation

1. When the interrelationship between the city and the fringe area is close, there is need
for unified planning and zoning. By means of annexation, Boises zoning ordinances can
be extended to the Northwest area, thus helping to assure orderly growth.
Coordinated action is much easier to achieve if the area is not under separate Ada
County jurisdiction.
2. Annexation leads to a unified community and can prevent the fragmentation of local
governmental authority among a large number of special districts. Fragmentation may
cause conflicts of authority and the absence of cooperation, political irresponsibility,
duplication of services, inadequate service levels, lack of effective area-wide planning
and programming, financial inequities and other problems.
3. Political boundaries will, after annexation, more nearly reflect the true and existing
sociological, economic, cultural, and physical boundaries of the city. The Northwest area
and the City of Boise are already inextricably bound together.
4. Urban growth without central planning and control becomes urban sprawl. If Boise City
is to continue to effectively provide urban services, it must be allowed to follow natural
growth patterns into those fringe areas where there is urban development. The city
must be able to guide development in an orderly manner, and avoid the need to extend
costly urban services to distant and scattered pockets of development. Annexation
can help guarantee to Boise City a measure of responsible control over its future.







4

FIRE PROTECTION
Service will continue to be provided to the annexed area as is currently being done via contract
with the North Ada County Fire and Rescue District.


5

PUBLIC WORKS / SEWER

Public Works has reviewed the proposed Northwest Annexation area.. The area is generally
described as north of State Street, south of Hill Road, east of City Limits near Bogart Road and
West of Horseshoe Bend Road.
I. GROUND WATER / AIR QUALITY
A. Assumptions
Ground water and air quality activities are addressed on a regional or site-by-site basis; there is
no anticipated additional workload.

II. SOLID WASTE
A. Assumptions
It is more cost effective and efficient for Republic Services to collect trash in equipment and
crews assigned to the city contract than to have the trash collected by trucks which leapfrog in
the annexed/non-annexed areas. Annexation of this area would, therefore, be a practical
solution to the waste of time and energy of separate city/county collection.
B. Issues
Area of Residential Development As with areas within the City, residential trash expenses are
not fully paid by residential customers. This annexation does not appear to include any
significant offsetting commercial development.
C. Miscellaneous
This area, if annexed, will require additional staff time and expenses to provide notification to
residents and businesses of the changes in solid waste services. Also, staff time will be needed
to transfer services and coordinate changes with Republic Services. Additional resources must
be allocated to IT and Utility Billing staff for new customers and additional billings. The City
franchise agreement with Republic provides for service in annexed areas to be initiated within
90 days of annexation. We may also need to coordinate the timing of the transfer of billing and
services from Ada County to the city. New residents and businesses will likely have lower solid
waste rates and additional services under the city franchise agreement.

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III. STORMWATER
A. Assumptions
The elements of the Boise stormwater management plan, as required by the stormwater NPDES
permit, includes coordination among Co-Permitted entities. Lead responsibilities for Boise City
include education and outreach, and stormwater management and discharge control ordinance
compliance. Individual responsibilities for Boise City include good housekeeping and regulatory
activities for the specific Boise City facilities. The proposed annexations should not require
additional staff, capital costs, or operation costs. The annexation should not increase any
stormwater program revenues.

B. Issues
Public Works Storm Water Program
This annexation is located adjacent to, and within, the existing service area for the current
public works stormwater program. The number and type of services that will be extended into
this area is not expected to be significant or to warrant additional resources and will not affect
outreach efforts to the targeted groups (i.e., development community, industrial facilities,
residents, etc.).
Planning & Development Services Construction Site Program
The Planning and Development Services Construction Site Program implements erosion and
sediment control regulations within Boise City jurisdictions. These annexations would provide
for a slight increase in the area regulated by this program and input from the planning and
development services construction site program is recommended.

IV. DRAINAGE
A. Issues
A very small portion of the area contains the Seamans Gulch floodplain. The City will be
required to provide floodplain management of existing and future development within this
area. The area contains numerous drains and irrigation canals which occasionally have issues to
be resolved.
B. Budget Needs
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Minor staff time will be required to review development applications and to resolve floodplain
management and drainage issues. This can be handled with existing staff.

V. STREET LIGHTING
A. Assumptions
All existing street lights within the annexation area are operated and maintained by Ada County
Highway District or by homeowners associations. The City of Boise would inherit those
responsibilities upon annexation. The estimated number of such lights is shown in the table
below.
B. Budget Needs
Capital Expenditures:
The annexation will require capital expenditures for installation of new lights to bring individual
areas up to the Citys standards. Staff estimates of the additional lights needed to bring the
area up to City lighting standards are found in the table below, along with estimated costs. In
recent years these costs have been funded from the County Street Light trust fund. Note that
quantities are estimated based on experience that many of the potential lights will not be
accepted by the residents, power will not be available, etc. In addition the City has begun
converting lights to more efficient LED technology and at some point the inherited lights will
need to be converted. Those costs are also shown in the table below.

O&M: The City will incur additional O&M costs for the lights that are inherited and for those
that will be added to the system. The resulting estimated annual O&M costs are shown in the
table below. Additional street light oversight should be able to be handled with existing staff.


Estimated
existing lights
(assume
O&M)
Estimated
additional
lights (LED)
Estimated
capital for
additional
lights
Estimated capital
for conversion of
existing lights to
LED
Total
estimated
annual O&M
120 10 $20,000 $60,000 $6,500

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VI. SEWER
A. Assumptions/Issues:
Annexation of these areas will have little financial impact on the sewer enterprise fund. The
City currently serves customers both inside and outside of the city limits under the same set of
rules and fees. Annexation should result in less administrative burdens with the City
undertaking all of the new development permitting obligations, rather that Public Works having
to interface with the County and State for building and plumbing permits. Annexation
covenants will no longer be required.

The City has already constructed and/or accepted construction of sewers for the vast majority
of the proposed annexation area.





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POLICE SERVICES



The Boise Police Department assigns its staff and resources according to a system of 10
different geographical areas. In addition to responding to calls for police service through the
E911 system, Boise Police officers, staff, and programs are available through a Neighborhood
Service Team (NST) which will be assigned to this area. The NST is comprised of officers,
detectives, School Resource Officers, Crime Prevention specialists, Crime Analysts, BPD Police
Commanders and others who are committed to resolving problems and enhancing the quality
of life as it relates to peace and safety.
The owners of land in the Northwest area currently pay tax revenue to the County for public
safety services.







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LIBRARY SERVICES
Residents in this area are currently served by the Eagle Public Library, Garden City Library, and
the Boise Public Library Collister branch through the LYNX Consortium Open Access agreement.
The service will not be impacted by the annexation and residents will be able to continue using
any of these library facilities.



The library will not need additional funding to provide the service. It is the same level of service
the residents are currently experiencing.











11


PARKS
One new neighborhood park, Magnolia, is planned for the area. If annexation occurs, park
improvements should begin in 2015 or 16.


.



12


Optimist Sports Complex









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PROPERTY TAX IMPACT



PROPERTY TAX IMPACT AND IMPACTS ON OTHER TAXING DISTRICTS
Properties in Ada County within Boise Citys area of impact but outside Boise City limits are
assessed property taxes by some of all of the following: the School District, Ada County, the
Ada County Highway District, the Emergency Medical System, Ada Community Library, Whitney
Fire Protection District, North Ada County Fire and Rescue, Pest Extermination, and some other
special districts. Upon annexation into the City, the fire district, the library district, and the pest
extermination district taxes are eliminated from tax bills and Boise Citys taxes are added.
There are many different tax code areas in Ada County with different combinations of taxing
districts and most have different tax rates because of the different special districts and school
districts.
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OTHER TAXES, FEES AND CHARGES

Taxes, other than property tax, are the same for taxpayers in and out of the City.
Residents within Boise City pay fees for services such as trash collection, user fees for services
that require individual registration such as recreation programs, or reservation of park facilities.
Resident fees for City services are generally lower than non-resident fees and the lower fees are
available immediately after annexation.
Boise City also collects franchise fees for electric, water, natural gas, cable television, and trash
hauling services, with rates from 1% to 5%. County franchise fees would no longer be collected
on billings from those companies.

City building permits and zoning approvals will be required for new construction or remodeling
as required within the uniform building codes and City zoning ordinances. After annexation,
Boise residents are no longer required to obtain county building or zoning permits. The costs
for City building permits and zoning applications differ from those in Ada County.




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Zoning and Land Use Plan
The Boise City Comprehensive Plan Blueprint Boise has a land use map that shows the land
use designation for the various lands and parcels proposed for annexation. Generally, the
designation will reflect current use of the property.

The lands will be subject to Boise City zoning ordinances upon annexation.
Zoning Designation: In most cases, the zoning designation will match as closely as possible the
current zoning in Ada County. In some cases, a zoning designation more compatible with
surrounding zoning and more in compliance with Blueprint Boise may be applied.

Ada County Zone Boise City Zone
RUT, R1 R-1A (large lot, semi-rural)
R4, R6, R8, R8M R-1C (single family urban densities)
R12 R-2D (higher density residential)
C1 C-1D (neighborhood commercial)
C2 C-2D (general commercial)




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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. What will be the change in my property taxes?
The examples and table above should give a fairly accurate representation of the increase in
taxes that will occur after annexation. Property taxes are levied in the fall and are due on
December 20th, although some people choose to pay them in two installments December
and the following June. After annexation, Boise City taxes will not be due until the following
December.
There are many different tax code areas in Ada County with different combinations of taxing
districts. Most have different tax rates because of the different special districts and school
districts. Please contact the Boise City Budget Office at 384-3725 if you have questions or
would like a specific computation of possible tax impacts on your property.

2. What will change with my sewer service? How much will it cost?
The City currently serves customers inside and outside of the city limits under the same set of
rules and fees. It is important to note that the City has made significant investments in
providing sewer service and capacity to areas outside City limits in the Area of Impact.
Numerous agreements have been entered into regarding annexation of these areas as a result
of connection to sewers. One major investment the City has made in providing sewer service to
the impact area is the completion of Sewer Master Plans. These Master Plans identify the size,
location and depth of sewers that will be necessary in order to serve all existing structures and
to serve future development of the areas. The City has already constructed and/or accepted
construction of sewers in many locations in the northwest area.
Cost. The City bills for sewer services two months in advance based on average winter water
consumption by each customer. Each customers average winter monthly water consumption
(as determined annually from water usage occurring between October 15th and April 15th) is
multiplied by a factor to determine that customers sewage collection and treatment bill.
Customers who use less than the average amount of residential water will have a lower fee and
conversely customers who use more than the average amount of water will have a higher fee.
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The Citys fees for sewer service will be included in its bills for trash collection billed every two
months.
3. What will I get for the increased property taxes?
Probably the most noticeable change is that the area will be served by City Police, rather than
the County Sheriff. Your property taxes will also pay for libraries, parks, greenbelt, fire
protection, etc. You will also be entitled to a lower rate for City-sponsored recreation
programs.
4. Can I keep my animals? What about my home business, or daycare?
Any activity that you are conducting on your property that is legal under Ada County law will be
grandfathered, if not outright allowed, under City law. The City does allow the keeping of farm
animals on lots one acre in size or larger. The City also allows in-home daycares and other in-
home businesses, subject to some restrictions.
5. Why is the City annexing this area?
These areas have been in the Citys sewer planning area as well as in the Area of Impact
for many years. Sewer is generally available and many of the lots are already
connected. State Law describes the Area of Impact as land which can reasonably be
expected to be annexed, and which is connected economically and geographically to the
City.
By agreement with Ada County, the Citys comprehensive plan is in force within the Area
of Impact. However, the primary implementing tool for the plan is the zoning
ordinance, which will not apply to the area until it is annexed.
The city is better able to provide comprehensive and transportation planning, building
permit services, and code enforcement than Ada County.
Annexation will provide area residents the opportunity to vote for those who are
already making decisions affecting their property.
6. Will school district boundaries change?
No.
7. Will I be required to connect to City water? My well works just fine.
Boise City is not in the water business. The annexation would not affect any change in water
service.
8. When will the final decision on annexation be made?
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The Boise City Council will make the decision at a public hearing probably six to eight weeks
after the Planning and Zoning Commission conducts a hearing to make a recommendation to
the Council. If the Council chooses to annex, the effective date would likely be in December,
2014.
10. Will annexation affect my subdivisions CC&Rs (Covenants, Conditions and
Restrictions)?
No. These are private agreements between property owners. The City does not administer or
enforce such agreements.